NAIROBI, Nov 18, 2007 (AFP) - Communication has been lost with a Comoran-flagged cargo ship captured by pirates off the Somali coast last month, raising fears of the crew safety, a maritime monitoring group said on Saturday.

The MV Al Marjan, with 22 mostly Asian crew members on board, was seized on October 19 as it sailed to Mogadishu port from the United Arab Emirates port of Dubai.

'We are worried that the ship has cut communication with the owner and the rest of the world,' said Andrew Mwangura of the Kenyan branch of the Seafarers' Assistance Programme.

NAIROBI, Oct 22, 2007 (AFP) - Gunmen have seized a Comoran-flagged cargo vessel off the coast of war-torn Somalia, where several pirate attacks have occurred this year, a maritime official said Monday.

The ship, MV Al Marjan, was seized last Friday as it sailed to Mogadishu port from the United Arab Emirates port of Dubai, said Andrew Mwangura of the Kenyan branch of the Seafarers' Assistance Programme.

'We are yet to establish information about the crew and whether the pirates have issued any demands,' Mwangura told AFP.

NAIROBI, Sept 28, 2007 (AFP) - Gunmen have seized a foreign fishing vessel off the coast of war-torn Somalia, where several pirate attacks have occurred this year, a Kenyan maritime official said Friday.

The vessel, FV Grego, was seized off northeastern Somalia and is believed to be docked in the coastal port of Berbera, said Andrew Mwangura of the Kenyan branch of the Seafarers' Assistance Programme.

'The vessel was seized on September 22 by gunmen who accused it of illegal fishing in Somali waters,' Mwangura told AFP.

NEW DELHI, Sept 11, 2007 (AFP) - India's Supreme Court gave permission on Tuesday for shipbreakers to dismantle a former French cruise liner, the Blue Lady, that environmentalists say is lined with toxic asbestos.

The ruling follows a year of controversy over the fate of the ship, originally launched in 1960 as the SS France, that environmental groups said contained some 1,200 tonnes of cancer-causing materials.

NEW DELHI, Sept 11, 2007 (AFP) - India's Supreme Court gave permission on Tuesday for shipbreakers to dismantle a former French cruise liner, the Blue Lady, that environmentalists say is lined with toxic asbestos, a report said.

The ruling followed a year of controversy over the fate of the ship, originally launched in 1960 as the SS France, that environmental groups said contained some 1,200 tonnes of cancer-causing materials.

HONG KONG, Sept 6, 2007 (AFP) - Promoters of the 'world's most prestigious waterside address' are hoping to catch a wave of interest in luxury apartments aboard an ocean-going liner costing up to 40 million dollars each.

Plans for 112 'Four Seasons Ocean Residences' will be unveiled in Hong Kong on Saturday to a select group of potential investors, the company behind the project said.

MANILA, Aug 2, 2007 (AFP) - The international community must step up efforts to safeguard maritime security in the face of terrorist threats, Sri Lanka Lanka said here on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said sea lanes, air space and territories were vulnerable to attack and that the world must focus more on securing the oceans.

He was speaking to reporters after ministers at the ASEAN Regional Forum, Asia's main annual security meeting, restated the importance of tackling maritime threats.